Shorter school year an option as CPS faces filling budget gap
A Chicago Board of Education member on Wednesday raised the prospect of shortening the city's school year to save money, though officials held off on publicly outlining steps being weighed to fill a budget gap.
Chicago Public Schools has ordered four furlough days for its employees while looking at layoffs and other spending reductions to cover for $215 million of state aid still in limbo after a veto by Gov. Bruce Rauner last December.
Cutting the school year could be a tough sell to Mayor Rahm Emanuel, who in his first term pushed hard to extend the CPS calendar in the face of opposition from the Chicago Teachers Union. But with the district looking at emptied reserves and a spiral of short-term borrowing that's near its limit, one board member acknowledged the possibility.
"One option in budget situations like the one we're facing would be cutting back on the number of school days," the Rev. Michael Garanzini said during a district budget hearing Wednesday.
Read more: http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/local/breaking/ct-chicago-school-board-budget-cut-met-20170125-story.html